151-155

Chapter 151: Level Up! 

Kaneki and Orochimaru shook hands once again. 

This time, there was no exchange of chakra to test each other. Instead, a sense of mutual recognition emerged between them, as if kindred spirits had met. 

"Kaneki-kun, I hope we’ll have opportunities to collaborate in the future," Orochimaru said with a smile. 

"Anytime you have an idea, Mr. Orochimaru, I’ll be ready," Kaneki replied warmly. 

After admiring Kaneki’s creations for a while longer, Orochimaru politely took his leave. 

Once Orochimaru was gone, Sasori watched him depart and said in a detached tone, "I don’t like that guy. He has the cold and slimy aura of a snake." 

Kaneki adjusted his glasses. 

"Regardless, Mr. Orochimaru’s talents are undeniable. Sasori, we should embrace the existence of different forms of art, shouldn’t we?" 

"You’re right, Kaneki-senpai." 

With that, Sasori immersed himself in studying the sealing techniques assigned by Pain. Meanwhile, Kaneki delegated his clones to learn sealing techniques while focusing his main body on analyzing the chakra of the Tailed Beast. 

Since the "Shukaku Incident" in Sunagakure, the Jashin Cult's reputation had skyrocketed. 

Previously, whether it was annihilating the Sakamoto Merchant Group or destroying Yugakure, those incidents were mere warm-ups.  

This time, however, the Jashin Cult directly attacked Sunagakure, one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, causing massive destruction and seizing the village’s sole Tailed Beast right under the Kazekage’s nose.  

Such a feat shocked the entire ninja world. Not only did the Land of Wind increase its vigilance against the Jashin Cult, but the other four great nations also strengthened their searches within their territories to prevent this terrifying organization from spreading.  

Even so, the Jashin Cult rapidly gained followers in smaller nations, thanks to its teachings of “truth, kindness, and beauty”—and more importantly, its tangible promise of food. 

When you’re starving to death, does it really matter which god you worship?  

Moreover, the cult gave its followers power, enabling them to rise up and resist the oppressive noble lords who ruled over them.  

For a time, the Jashin Cult's influence grew immensely.  

[The Evolution Game of Lord Jashin] 

• Level: 5 (Next level requires 200,000 reputation points)  

• Reputation: 156,940  

• Ability 1:  

• Womb of the Primordial Creator  

• Gene Pool: Human Genes, Zerg Genes, RC Genes  

• Current Analysis:  

• Jashin Genes (37.9%)  

• Yang Release Techniques (47.5%)  

• Yin Release Techniques (45.3%)  

• Sage Genes (35.2%)  

• One-Tail Shukaku Chakra (21.25%)  

• Sealing Techniques (56.1%) 

• Creatable Species:  

• Three-Headed Demon Snake (Three heads, each unique)  

• Harpy (Now with venomous attacks!)  

• Desert Jackal (Strategist of the desert)  

• Tailed Beast Shell (You’re a Jinchūriki, I’m a Jinchūriki, everyone’s a Jinchūriki!) 

• Ability 2:  

• Blessing of Jashin: Your body is blessed by Jashin. As long as Jashin exists, you will possess immortality. 

With the level-up, Kaneki’s interface underwent significant updates.  

Aside from progress in ongoing research projects, the species section gained three new units.  

First, the classic Demon Snake received an upgrade in the new version, evolving from one head to three. Each head could now perform different jutsu, combining them into powerful composite techniques. With its enhanced RC-based abilities, the Demon Snake became a formidable force in both close and long-range combat.  

Second, the Harpy, represented by Kanae, also received improvements. Building on her soundwave and genjutsu capabilities, Kaneki added venom sacs from the salamander, enabling her to release deadly poison gas using Wind Release. The poison, further enhanced with bacteria, could now cause devastating plagues if unleashed. 

Third, the newly added Desert Jackal unit complemented Kaneki's strategy for the Land of Wind.  

This lineup consisted of:  

• Ghost-Faced Wind Scorpions for large-scale battles,  

• Venomous Blade Centipedes as stealth assassins,  

• Desert Dragonflies as aerial scouts equipped with explosive insects, and  

• Desert Jackals as humanoid, jackal-like warriors wielding bone scythes. These intelligent creatures acted as field commanders for small units, relaying hive commands and performing as capable fighters when needed. 

Kaneki planned to turn the Land of Wind and Sunagakure into a testing ground for his evolving army, pushing the boundaries of his experiments.  

Lastly, the Tailed Beast Shell was Kaneki's most advanced creation, derived from analyzing Shukaku’s chakra. These parasites, like Blood Spirit Insects, could store vast amounts of chakra. However, while Blood Spirit Insects stored Yang Release chakra, these stored Tailed Beast chakra.  

Upon activation, the host’s body would be enveloped in a chakra cloak, granting immense offensive and defensive power.  

In essence, Kaneki could draw Shukaku’s chakra into these "Shells," enabling individuals like Hidan and Sasori to harness Tailed Beast-level power.  

True power for everyone. Everyone can be a Jinchūriki. 

Kaneki tested this theory by making Hidan the first experiment. Thanks to his immortality, Kaneki didn’t need to worry about Hidan’s body rejecting the Shell. He enhanced Hidan’s version to its limit, implanting as many parasites as possible.  

Theoretically, as long as Shukaku’s chakra was replenished, Hidan could continuously use the chakra cloak.  

However, since Shukaku’s chakra was finite, Kaneki could only extract limited amounts for now. Until more Tailed Beasts were captured, the Tailed Beast Shell would remain a rare commodity.  

Villages like Sunagakure, which had lost their Tailed Beast, could only dream of acquiring it.  

(End of Chapter) 

*Chapter 152: Golem, Please Open Your Eyes*

Seven days passed quickly.

Compared to experiments that could take months, years, or even decades, this amount of time felt like the blink of an eye.

Fortunately, although Illusory Dragon Nine Seals was an S-rank sealing technique, it wasn’t too difficult for Kaneki and the others to learn. That was because they only needed to assist Pain in casting the technique, rather than performing the core sealing themselves.

In other words, they were playing a support role. The actual sealing work was Pain’s responsibility.

Still, as an S-rank sealing technique, it offered significant insight to Kaneki, furthering his understanding of sealing arts.

This could count as an extra reward he earned from joining the Akatsuki.

At the Akatsuki headquarters, the leader Pain had already arrived in advance.

By the time Kaneki arrived with Hidan and Sasori, the other members were already present.

The current Akatsuki members were: Pain, Konan, Zetsu (both black and white), Tobi, Orochimaru, plus Kaneki and the two he brought along—seven members in total.

“We’re still short of ten people…” Hidan complained. According to the scroll they studied, this sealing technique supposedly required ten people to activate.

Hearing Hidan’s concern, Tobi instantly appeared beside him and chimed in, “Right, right, Hidan-senpai! I said the same thing earlier, but Leader yelled at me!”

Pain sighed helplessly and explained, “While Illusory Dragon Nine Seals works best with ten people, it doesn’t mean it’s impossible to perform with just seven.”

Hidan was clearly not convinced. “If seven people are enough, why does it say ten in the instructions?”

“Exactly!”

The masked Tobi echoed in agreement.

Pain added, “With seven people, the process takes longer—about seven days. If there were ten, it would only take three days.”

To be honest, Hidan and Tobi were the two people Nagato found the most annoying.

Is it because their names both have ‘fly’ in them? Nagato wondered if, next time, he should consider a broader range of factors when recruiting new members—not just their combat strength.

Screening by name first didn’t seem like such a bad idea.

Regardless, Hidan finally quieted down and joined Kaneki and Sasori on the three vacant “fingers” of the giant statue.

However, the silence didn’t last long. Tobi started talking to Hidan again.

“Hidan-senpai, how many days did it take you to learn this sealing technique?”

“Seven days. Why?”

“I learned it in six and a half days! Looks like I’m a bit more talented than you, Hidan-senpai…”

“You bastard!”

“Tobi, Hidan, prepare to begin.” Pain’s stern voice rang out, his forehead visibly marked with a throbbing vein of frustration.

Hidan grumbled, “Yeah, yeah, we’re starting.”

Tobi scratched his mask but said nothing further.

Kaneki adjusted his glasses and asked, “Leader, is there a way to keep the kid alive after extracting the Tailed Beast?”

Typically, a Jinchūriki’s life was tied to the Tailed Beast within them. When the Tailed Beast was extracted, the Jinchūriki’s life force would dissipate, resulting in their death.

If possible, Kaneki didn’t want Gaara to die like this.

After all, those who had experienced despair often awakened tremendous power. Kaneki was eager to see Gaara’s future potential.

Hearing Kaneki speak, Pain’s instinct was to silence him immediately. But realizing it was Kaneki, he paused and seriously considered the request.

The Rinnegan, as the eyes of the Sage, did have a way to bring people back to life. However, the cost was steep, and Nagato would never waste such a precious technique on Gaara.

That said, there were alternative methods to preserve Gaara’s life.

“The process of extracting a Tailed Beast only harms the kid’s body, not his soul. There’s still a chance to save him.”

Pain looked at Kaneki and asked seriously, “I do have a way to transfer his soul, but you need to find a suitable vessel to contain it.”

“No problem.”

Kaneki agreed without hesitation.

Finding a suitable body was child’s play for Kaneki.

He could simply clone a new body for Gaara using his genes.

Seeing Kaneki accept so easily, the others had mixed reactions.

Pain was surprised that Kaneki cared about a kid’s life.

Orochimaru, on the other hand, was curious about what kind of body Kaneki would create for Gaara. After all, he himself was also in need of a new body…

“If there’s nothing else, let’s begin.”

Under Pain’s lead, the six others formed the necessary hand seals, and Illusory Dragon Nine Seals began smoothly.

One critical element of this sealing technique was the rings that represented their identities.

As the technique activated, everyone injected their chakra into their rings. Soon, an eerie green light enveloped them, and the corresponding symbols on their rings glowed within the light.

Kaneki’s symbol was “North,” Hidan’s was “Three,” and Sasori’s was “Jade.”

From a distance, they looked like green orbs of light converging at the tips of a giant statue’s fingers.

Driven by seven immense streams of chakra, the colossal, ominous Gedo Statue finally began to react.

A terrifying aura emanated from the statue.

With a deafening rumble, the Gedo Statue slowly opened its mouth.

Moments later, massive streams of blue chakra poured out of its mouth, forming nine giant dragons that quickly flew in all directions to bite into Gaara, who was suspended in mid-air.

The nine chakra dragons fused into a single, massive, water-like chakra sphere the moment they latched onto Gaara.

Within this overwhelming chakra, the One-Tail, Shukaku, stared in horror.

However, this chakra seemed to have an innate suppression effect on Tailed Beasts. Shukaku’s immense form began dissolving into orange-red chakra.

From the outside, it appeared as though Gaara had opened his mouth and the overwhelming Tailed Beast chakra was flowing out of his eyes, mouth, nose, and ears.

Like streams flowing into an ocean, the chakra moved along the channels formed by the nine dragons and was absorbed by the Gedo Statue.

As the Tailed Beast chakra was absorbed, one of the statue’s nine eyes slowly opened…

Kaneki carefully observed the process.

As he had expected, Nagato was indeed using the Gedo Statue to absorb the Tailed Beasts.

Combining this with the earlier incident where Shukaku mistook fragments of the Gedo Statue for the Divine Tree, as well as its reference to that legend, Kaneki was now fairly certain that this Gedo Statue was the so-called Divine Tree.

The only thing Kaneki didn’t know yet was how the Gedo Statue would transform into the Divine Tree…

---

*(End of Chapter)*

*Chapter 153: The Shopkeeper!*

As the tailed beast chakra within his body was continuously extracted, Gaara’s vitality gradually faded away.

The entire sealing process for Shukaku lasted seven days. During this time, all Kaneki and the others had to do was maintain the sealing technique’s operation.

They could even use clones to handle other tasks. For example, halfway through, Konan had her clone go to Amegakure to take care of some matters.

Kaneki, however, was a bit busier than the rest. Before the sealing was completed, he needed to use Gaara’s genes to clone a body that could accommodate his soul.

For Kaneki, seven days was more than enough.

As the last drop of tailed beast chakra was drained from Gaara’s body, the eye on the Gedo Statue that represented the One-Tail opened fully.

Kaneki noticed that the Gedo Statue had nine eyes in total. Judging by the current situation, each eye seemed to correspond to a specific tailed beast.

Moreover, it seemed the Gedo Statue didn’t require a complete tailed beast to function—just a portion would suffice.

Even though Kaneki had extracted only one-tenth of Shukaku, neither the Gedo Statue nor Nagato displayed any particular reaction.

Perhaps next time, I can extract even more? he thought.

It’s fascinating to wonder… what will happen if all nine tailed beasts are gathered?

A glint of cold light flashed across Kaneki’s glasses.

“The sealing is complete.”

With Pain’s calm announcement, the Akatsuki’s capture of their first tailed beast was officially finished.

The green glow around Kaneki and the others dissipated, and the Gedo Statue’s newly opened eye slowly shut once more.

However, Kaneki could distinctly feel that after absorbing Shukaku, the Gedo Statue seemed to emanate a faint sense of… vitality.

Though incomplete, it was undeniable.

“Seven whole days! I’m exhausted!” Hidan complained as soon as the sealing was over.

Beside him, Tobi stretched lazily, moving his limbs and chiming in, “Yeah, yeah, working nonstop for seven days is just too much! Leader, if you don’t give us overtime pay, you’re too stingy!”

Pain’s face darkened at their words. This was supposed to be a godly, mysterious organization aimed at creating a better world. Discussing wages seemed absurdly mundane.

To prevent Tobi and Hidan from furthering their comedic routine, Pain quickly changed the subject. Turning to Kaneki, he asked, “Is the boy’s body ready?”

“Of course,” Kaneki replied without hesitation.

As his words fell, a fat, long serpent burrowed up from the ground and spat out a body identical to Gaara’s.

It was truly identical—from facial features to hairstyle, down to each strand of hair.

Aside from a few postnatal differences, such as scars from injuries, everything had been meticulously crafted by Kaneki based on Gaara’s genetic expression.

If this body couldn’t accommodate Gaara’s soul, there likely wouldn’t be any other body in the world capable of doing so.

Seeing the body, a glimmer of surprise flickered in everyone’s eyes.

Whether it was Nagato, Zetsu, or Orochimaru, none of them were fools. In an instant, they realized the immense value of such a technology.

When paired with the technique of soul transfer...

Orochimaru’s eyes lit up with fervent interest once again.

Only two people at the scene were unfazed.

One was Sasori, who wasn’t at all surprised by the masterpiece his senior had created. In his view, anything Kaneki produced—even more astonishing creations—was entirely within reason because Kaneki had already transcended the limits of what the ninja world could imagine.

The other was Hidan, who was genuinely clueless. To him, it was just a body. He’d killed countless people, so what was there to be surprised about?

As for Tobi, hidden behind his mask, his thoughts were unreadable.

“Since everything’s ready, let’s begin.”

Pain summoned an orange-haired clone using the summoning technique.

Unsurprisingly, this clone also possessed the Rinnegan.

Orochimaru and Sasori watched this with thoughtful expressions.

Hidan, however, was thoroughly puzzled. “What? Another Rinnegan?”

Pain ignored Hidan and controlled his clone to approach Gaara’s corpse.

With a special chakra emanating from his hands, the clone grabbed at Gaara’s body. A visible spiritual form instantly separated from it.

The clone then grasped Gaara’s soul and placed it into the new body Kaneki had prepared.

Though this process seemed simple, the critical point was having a suitable vessel.

Without it, even the Rinnegan’s wielder, possessing the Six Paths’ powers, couldn’t easily resurrect someone.

As Gaara’s soul gradually fused into the new body, Pain said indifferently, “That’s it. As long as the body doesn’t reject the soul, there shouldn’t be any issues.”

“Thank you.”

Kaneki smiled at Pain.

He was genuinely grateful for Pain’s assistance. Without it, he might have lost Gaara—an excellent “seedling.”

Pain merely nodded without further comment.

Once the sealing process was complete, Kaneki took Gaara back with him. He was confident in his cloning technology.

After all, this body was entirely Gaara’s on a genetic level. There was no reason for it to reject his soul.

To be cautious, however, Kaneki placed Gaara in a blood pool to ensure he could intervene promptly if anything unexpected happened.

Fortunately, his precautions weren’t needed. On the third day of fusion, Gaara woke up.

“Where is this...?”

Gaara’s face was filled with deep confusion.

Over the past few days, he’d felt like he was trapped in a long nightmare. He dreamt of everyone in the village wanting to kill him—his father, even his uncle.

“None of it was a dream.”

Kaneki’s sudden voice shattered Gaara’s hope.

“As heartbreaking as it might be, your father, Rasa, and your uncle, Yashamaru, genuinely tried to kill you. None of it was an illusion.”

Kaneki spoke the harsh truth without any sugarcoating.

Memories flooded back to Gaara, and his breathing quickened. Staring at Kaneki, he asked, “Who are you?”

Kaneki adjusted his glasses with a smile. “I’m the shopkeeper, Gaara.”

“The shopkeeper…”

As Gaara looked at the man before him, his image gradually merged with a figure he could trust in his mind.

“Shopkeeper!”

(End of chapter.)

Chapter 154: I Want to Become Stronger

Memories flashed through Gaara’s mind. In his short life, he suddenly realized that the only person he could trust and rely on seemed to be the man in front of him—this shopkeeper.

At that moment, Gaara couldn’t hold it in anymore. Tears poured from his eyes like a broken dam.

Kaneki reached out, ruffled Gaara’s hair gently, and comforted him softly.

“Don’t worry. I’ve already removed that monster from your body. How are you feeling now?”

Hearing this, Gaara immediately stopped crying. His teary eyes looked down at his hands in disbelief. Then, he lifted his shirt to check his abdomen.

Sure enough, the seal that had been with him since birth—like a nightmare—was gone. That could only mean the monster inside him had disappeared!

Not only that, but Gaara felt his body had become much lighter. The exhaustion that had plagued him seemed to have completely vanished, as if he had been reborn into a brand-new body.

“I feel great, but it’s strange... I feel like I’ve lost something, and I can’t get used to it.”

Gaara couldn’t quite describe what was missing, but he knew it wasn’t the monster.

Kaneki smiled faintly, pulled out a scroll, and unraveled it. As the seal was lifted, smoke spread through the room, and a gourd as tall as a person appeared in front of Gaara.

Kaneki tapped the sand gourd, and in the next moment, the sand stored inside began to flow out, gathering around Gaara. The sand moved gently over his skin, as though it had a life of its own.

“This is...”

Gaara reached out and touched the sand lightly. That familiar, comforting feeling surged back into his heart.

Yes, this feeling...

What had made him feel lost wasn’t the monster that had been inside him but the sand that had protected him since childhood.

Without the sand’s protection, Gaara would have died during countless assassination attempts.

Until now, Gaara had believed that the sand was controlled by the monster inside his body. But why was it still here now? And why did it feel... so close?

“Shopkeeper, why?”

Hearing Gaara’s question, Kaneki explained, “This isn’t Shukaku’s power. It’s your mother Karura’s power.”

Kaneki’s answer froze Gaara in place.

He hadn’t expected to hear his mother’s name at this moment.

Seeing Gaara’s stunned expression, Kaneki continued, “There’s something you need to know. Your previous body was damaged when I removed the monster. The body you have now is one I created for you, and I transferred your soul into it.”

“When I was handling your original body, I found a chakra inside you that didn’t belong to you. That chakra was very similar to yours, and it likely came from your mother, Karura.”

“It was that chakra that controlled the sand, protecting you time and time again.”

“Your mother never left you.”

Hearing Kaneki’s final words, Gaara felt like he had been struck by lightning.

He stared at the sand surrounding him in disbelief, memories of endless assassination attempts flooding his mind.

No matter the time or place, the sand always appeared before him, protecting him.

Gaara had always thought it was Shukaku’s power. He had even resented the sand for hurting others and wished to abandon it.

But no matter what, the sand had always protected him.

“So... you were left behind to protect me by my mother...”

Tears welled up in Gaara’s eyes once again. He tightly grasped the sand in his hands, as if holding his mother’s hand.

Just as Kaneki said, Karura had never truly left Gaara.

This great mother had done everything she could, even in her final moments, to ensure that she could stay by her son’s side in another form.

What would she have thought if she knew about the suffering her son endured? How would she treat her husband—the Fourth Kazekage Rasa, the so-called great leader of the Sand Village?

This thought—rather dark and twisted—flashed through Kaneki’s mind.

Surprisingly, Gaara didn’t remain immersed in his mother’s love for long. After just ten minutes, he commanded the sand to return to the gourd. Then, he looked at Kaneki with a determined and angry gaze.

“Shopkeeper, where is my uncle Yashamaru?”

As he spoke, the gentle warmth from moments earlier had turned into unshakable resolve and fury.

If his mother loved him so much, then why did his father...

Gaara clenched his small fists tightly. His mother’s love only amplified the hatred he felt for that man.

Now, he needed the truth—the truth about his uncle, Yashamaru.

Kaneki adjusted his glasses slightly and answered, “Your uncle Yashamaru’s assassination attempt, including the words he spoke to you before his death, were all arranged by your father, Rasa. He did it to test your capacity as a jinchūriki.”

Even Kaneki struggled to comprehend Rasa’s actions. But this was the reality, no matter how senseless it seemed.

“...”

Gaara lowered his head. The shadow cast by his hair hid his expression.

“I see.”

After a long silence, he finally spoke.

Kaneki patted Gaara’s shoulder. “Gaara, no matter what you choose, I will support you.”

Just as Kaneki turned to leave, wanting to give Gaara some space to think, Gaara suddenly called out to him.

“Shopkeeper, I want your help.”

Half of Kaneki’s body was still cloaked in darkness, but his lips curved into a faint smile at those words.

He turned back to face Gaara and asked, “How do you want me to help you?”

“I want to become strong.”

Gaara’s young eyes stared straight into Kaneki’s cold gaze behind his glasses.

Through Gaara’s eyes, Kaneki could see his resolve, his thirst for revenge, and his anger toward the world.

“I want to become strong enough to destroy the Sand Village. I will obliterate everything that man has worked to protect—everything.”

It was hard to believe that such words had come from a six- or seven-year-old child.

Yet when Gaara spoke, there wasn’t the slightest hesitation.

If that man had resolved to destroy everything Gaara loved and cherished just to prove the capacity of his so-called jinchūriki vessel...

Then Gaara would, in turn, destroy everything that man sought to protect—piece by piece, until nothing remained.

At that moment, Gaara was like a young beast ready to devour everything in its path, roaring in fury and ready to destroy the world.

Kaneki was deeply satisfied with what he saw.

“Leave it to me.”

*(End of Chapter)*

*Chapter 155: Danzo Arrives*

Gaara's desire to grow stronger gave Kaneki plenty of ideas.

The first involved Shukaku. Kaneki could reseal Shukaku inside Gaara, turning him back into a Jinchūriki.

Shukaku, now completely molded by Kaneki into a servant of the Evil God, could easily be reintegrated into Gaara. With this, Gaara could become a nearly perfect yet slightly flawed Jinchūriki at any moment Kaneki chose.

However, since Shukaku was still an essential experimental subject for Kaneki, this option was shelved for now.

The second option involved Kaneki's newly acquired and currently sole Kekkei Genkai: Magnet Release.

Yes, with Sasori's assistance, Kaneki successfully deciphered Magnet Release by studying the chakra pathways and genetics embedded in the core structure of the Third Kazekage.

This meant that Kaneki could now transplant the genes capable of producing Magnet Release chakra into Gaara's DNA, allowing him to wield this Kekkei Genkai and become a Magnet Release ninja.

This was Kaneki's second plan for Gaara.

The third option was for Gaara to continue honing Sand Manipulation, a signature technique of Sunagakure, and fully unleash his innate talent.

Kaneki left the decision to Gaara.

"Shopkeeper, may I choose to have the Magnet Release genes transplanted and also train in Sand Manipulation?" Gaara asked earnestly.

"I want to defeat him using his own power."

Naturally, Kaneki didn't refuse Gaara's request and agreed immediately.

"Of course, but your soul hasn't fully adapted to this body yet, so the genetic modification will have to wait for a while."

While Gaara's soul was already well-aligned with his current body, it was best not to rush such processes.

After speaking, Kaneki pulled a scroll from a nearby shelf and handed it to Gaara.

"In the meantime, if you get bored, use this to learn better ways to control the sand."

"Understood, Shopkeeper. Thank you very much!"

Gaara accepted the scroll, bowing deeply to Kaneki with genuine gratitude and respect. Despite their lack of blood relation, Gaara's heart was filled with admiration and thankfulness for Kaneki.

Kaneki gently placed a hand on Gaara's shoulder and smiled.

"Carry your anger and hatred forward. Show the world your strength. I have high hopes for you, Gaara."

Hearing these words, Gaara blushed slightly, suppressing his excitement as he replied, "I won't let you down, Shopkeeper."

---

Meanwhile, the sealing team had completed their mission and dispersed quickly.

Pain and Konan returned to Amegakure, which had stabilized significantly over the past few months.

Under the guise of a god, Pain protected the village, with a single rainless day each week serving as a testament to his divine power and presence.

Beneath this "god" was the Angel—Konan—the highest authority most Amegakure ninjas could encounter.

As for the god above the angel, none were deemed worthy of an audience.

At this moment, their "god" was sitting in a wheelchair atop the highest point in the village, gazing down at the rain-soaked land.

"Nagato, what’s our next step?"

Konan stood by his side, one hand resting on the wheelchair's armrest.

"Our plan was to recruit all the members first before beginning the capture of the tailed beasts. But who would’ve thought Shizuki Kaneki would cause such a commotion over capturing the One-Tail?" Konan's tone carried a trace of dissatisfaction; Kaneki's actions had disrupted their plans.

"Enough, Konan. Don't blame Kaneki anymore. Our organization wasn’t exposed, and we succeeded in capturing the first tailed beast. That’s what matters."

Nagato brushed his fingers lightly over his Rinnegan and continued, "I can feel it. With the successful sealing of the One-Tail, the Gedo Statue’s power has grown significantly."

Letting his hand fall away, Nagato gazed into the distance and gave a soft command:

"Continue recruiting new members. Once we have ten, we’ll proceed with capturing the other tailed beasts."

"Understood. Uchiha Madara has stated he’ll personally go to Konoha to recruit the Uchiha prodigy, Uchiha Itachi."

Konan's tone grew slightly strained at the mention of "Uchiha Madara," as she and Nagato had yet to verify his identity. Despite his claims and his impressive power, they could only tentatively accept that he was indeed the legendary Madara.

After all, they had never met the real Uchiha Madara.

Nagato frowned slightly. "Uchiha Itachi, huh..."

As someone with ambitions to overthrow the world, Nagato paid close attention to the major ninja villages, especially Konoha, widely regarded as the strongest.

Uchiha Itachi, renowned as a genius second only to Kakashi, had garnered Nagato’s interest.

"Why would a genius like that defect from Konoha and join the Akatsuki?"

Nagato couldn’t fathom any reason for Itachi to abandon his village.

Konan shrugged. "Who knows? But Madara guarantees that this Uchiha kid has the strength to join us."

"No matter. If he wants to bring the Uchiha’s power into our ranks, let’s see what happens. After all, the Sharingan is no match for the Rinnegan."

Nagato’s confidence in his Rinnegan was unshakable. He believed it could suppress any enemy, even Uchiha Madara himself.

Konan nodded subtly, watching Nagato's growing confidence.

Since Yahiko’s death, Nagato’s strength had increased rapidly. Not only had he mastered the Rinnegan, but he had also developed six powerful puppets representing the Six Paths, far surpassing the strength of most Kage-level ninjas.

His rising confidence was only natural.

"Understood. However, the organization’s funds are running low."

Konan raised another issue.

Nagato replied decisively, "If necessary, we can target the nobility within the Land of Rain. It’s time those pigs we’ve been feeding contributed something useful."

"Understood. I’ll handle it appropriately."

With Nagato’s approval, Konan knew what needed to be done. Her body dissolved into sheets of paper and disappeared into the air.

---

Meanwhile, another Akatsuki member, Orochimaru, had returned to his hideout on the border of the Land of Fire.

"Lord Orochimaru, Danzo has arrived."

(End of Chapter)